


Fallen Archangels

by ScorchCC1262



Category: Life Is Strange, Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Demon Summoning, F/F, F/M, More tags to follow, POV Third Person, Personal Growth, Power of Friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-01 21:45:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14529867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScorchCC1262/pseuds/ScorchCC1262
Summary: After receiving a premonition of an incoming storm that could decimate her hometown of Arcadia Bay, newly transferred Blackwell Academy Photography Student Max Caulfield investigates what she could do to prevent its manifestation and save her fellow townsfolk. She, along with the Archangels - a crimefighting group of fellow Persona users and friends - uses the alternate dimension known as the Metaverse to remove the distorted desires of their targets while they try to uncover the mysteries behind the recent wave of kidnappings that have plagued the town, the origin of the storm in Max's nightmares, and the one person connected to all of this - a missing Blackwell Academy student named Rachel Amber.This is a re-imagining of the story of Life is Strange if Max's power was of a Persona instead of time manipulation.





	1. Of Long Noses and Storms

**Author's Note:**

> Updates:  
> 05/29 - changed the summary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A Persona 5 and Life is Strange crossover? I mean, why not? After playing both games, it just seemed to make sense to me. The first palace of Persona 5 is almost literally beat-for-beat the same plot as Life is Strange. So, I decided to merge them both together to do an interesting twist to the story of Life is Strange! The first chapter has been posted to see if people are interested in reading it! Hope you enjoy!

The first thing Max felt was the cold touch of the raindrop-filled winds as they landed on her lightly freckled face. She opened her eyes to see an all too familiar white lighthouse at the top of the hill overtaken by the foreboding dark grey clouds of a sudden and aggressive storm. The trees rocked back and forth with the winds as stray branches flew off them from the violence of the wind alone. Lifting her left arm to shield her face, Max felt the odd urge to walk the path up to the top of the hill and towards the lighthouse. When she finally made it to the top, she struggled against the powerful winds to the edge of the cliff side. Her jaw dropped in horror as her eyes zoned in on the epicenter of the storm. The hurricane was taller than any skyscraper she had seen in Seattle and it was as wide as the seaside town it was about to consume.

“NO!” Max’s eyes went wide when she realized in horror, “It’s headed straight for Arcadia Bay!”

The wide-eyed teenager backed away in disbelief. The storm decimated and ripped through the familiar locales and buildings as it slowly crept inland.

“This must be a nightmare,” she shook her head in disbelief and muttered to herself, “This… this can’t be happening…”

“Ah, Trickster!”

Max quickly turned towards the deep and terrifyingly calm voice that called out to her from near the Lighthouse. The strange figure sat in a large leather office chair and a plain wooden desk. It had an abnormally long nose and bulging eyes that stared intensely at Max. The creepily smiling humanoid stranger sat in his comfortable chair, seemingly unaffected by the chaos of the storm around him as he entwined his long white gloved fingers together in front of his face.

“It seems our fates intertwine to face this difficult endeavor,” he looked up from his desk, raised an arm to point towards the violent hurricane and continued, “Lest you desire see this small town meet its ruin...”

The abrupt squawk of the classroom bell forced Max to snap straight up in her seat and out of her strange and unusually clear nightmare. She quickly and anxiously snapped her head left and right to find that there was no storm and that Arcadia Bay was still safe. Chaotic images of trees swaying with the high winds and broken branches flying through the rain-soaked air were replaced with the soft and peaceful faces of people lining the walls of a classroom. Each face was carefully framed and captured by the students for the class’ “Everyday Heroes” project. The howling screech of the winds that masked the screams of victims and the sounds of breaking wood from the demolished buildings were replaced by the loud chatter of young teenagers as they funneled out of the classroom and out into the sea of students. Max had never been so relieved to see “normal” again.

“Calm down Max,” she thought to herself, “I’m just in Photography class. Everything’s fine. There is no storm, there is no creepy thing or whatever with an office desk, and that definitely was just some nightmare.”

No matter what she tried to tell herself, the anxiety persisted. Her mind ran around in circles and she felt her heart tremble as the nightmare ran and re-ran through her head as clearly and as vividly as if she was still presently there. Questions persisted and overwhelmed her thoughts like the storm that overtook the Bay as she stood up and rapidly began to stuff her belongings in her bag. Her eyes rapidly darted around the room as the self-conscious whispers began to surface. She had noticed that most of the class had left right at the bell, and that left only a few people to potentially notice her odd behavior. One of them was Victoria Chase, Blackwell Academy’s popular girl and pixie-cut bitch. Luckily for Max, she was too focused on kissing up to their photography teacher, Mark Jefferson to care about Max’s nervous breakdown. Despite that reassurance, Max still felt a pair of eyes fall towards her direction. She turned her head and realized that the only other person in the room was Kate Marsh, Max’s dorm neighbor and a shy, gentle soul. Kate had caught Max’s eye during move-in day when Kate had knocked on her door to introduce herself and welcome her to their dorm. Max had tensed up so much at her pretty face and kind demeanor that she was unable to find the words to respond to her pleasant hello. That same Hello was echoing through her head when Max realized that Kate had got up and walked over to once again greet her.

“Hello? Max?” Kate tilted her head to the side while her grin tried to suppress a slight giggle.

“Oh, hello Kate! I didn't see you there!” Max responded the best way she knew how.

“Really? You seemed to be staring at me for a good few minutes from what I was seeing!” Kate put her hand over her mouth as she chuckled.

“Sorry, my mind was on some stuff and I was just thinking about what I was doing after class…” Max’s eyes widened as she realized who she needed to meet up with and she shoved her last remaining item, an old Polaroid camera, into her shoulder bag.

“Sorry Kate, but I gotta go but it was nice talking to you!” Max blurted out in one breath as she rushed out of the classroom, not noticing that Mr. Jefferson had tried to call Max over to his desk.

“Uh, okay. Bye, Max,” Kate whispered with her hand raised in a half-wave. Her eyes looked down towards Max’s now empty desk with a mix of confusion and sadness.

Max stepped out of the classroom and into the busy traffic of students in the hallway. She took out her headphones to drown out the noisy footsteps with more calming tunes and weaved through the taller crowd. She pondered the benefits of being a tiny and shy nobody in school as she squeezed through the narrow gaps between people until a ring came from her smartphone. Her thoughts about how to respond to what she thought was a text were interrupted by the sudden appearance of a mysterious red app that grew and took up over half of her screen. She pushed her finger hard to drag the app out of the way and unwittingly bumped into someone in front of her.

“Oh, sorry,” Max squeaked out nervously and she jumped back in surprise. The man she bumped into and everyone around her had frozen in place as if time stopped at that single moment. Down towards the end of the hallway and in front of the exit doors glowed a tower of arctic blue fire. With simultaneous fear and curiosity, her eyes focused on the only source of movement in the crowded hallway as a pair of eyes and a smile made of an orange fire emerged from the cold blue flames with an ominous but familiar cackle of a little girl’s laughter.

The blue fire danced in a cylindrical fashion as Max slowly walked towards the clearing the fire occupied. As Max approached, the orange smile widened and the blue flames grew into the silhouette and appearance of a dragon before rapidly shrinking into the form of a little girl. Not knowing what motivated her to do so, Max reached out with her hand towards the fiery orange smile on the blue flame’s “face”. As if it sensed her hand, the smiling flame burst outward, revealing Max’s face staring back at her with angry, wide, golden-pupiled eyes and a confident smirk. Max stared with a fearful fascination back at her doppelgänger and how its face contorted into a confident insanity as it cackled into a louder laugh that made her jump backward into one of the frozen figures behind her.

“Hey, twirp! Watch where you're going!” A tall teen with a letterman jacket cursed at Max as she felt a shove forward from where she jumped. Blinking rapidly, she looked around and realized everything had started moving again and the odd doppelgänger and flames were gone. The twice anxiety-ridden girl looked back at her phone and quickly slid the mysterious red app into her trash icon before opening the door and rushing towards the rusted pickup truck that was already waiting for her outside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second Chapter will be up soon! Thanks for reading!


	2. Three Waffles, Two Whales, and One Weird Wonderland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A trip for waffles turns into Max and Chloe's first trip down a rabbit hole...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here is the second chapter of Max's Persona Adventures! I appreciate the words of encouragement in the first chapter and I hope you all enjoy this next one as well!

The drive to the Two Whales Diner with Max’s longtime friend and now classmate Chloe Price was nothing out of the ordinary. She and her blue haired, beanie packing, leather jacket clad, punk rocker best friend have always frequented the establishment to get what Max always felt were the best waffles in town. Visually, both friends were complete opposites of each other. Max was always very studious and reserved while Chloe was very vulgar and adventurous. It still amazed Max how close they remained despite her having to briefly move away to Seattle during their middle school years and despite Chloe both having to endure the death of her father and the recent disappearance of her longtime girlfriend, Rachel Amber. She pondered how Chloe could still maintain her rather chipper attitude despite all of that loss.

“Well, we’re here, Maxaroo!” Chloe interrupted Max’s thoughts and exclaimed, “The Two Whales! You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy!”

Max giggled as she shoved Chloe, “Okay, Chloe-Wan Kenobi. Let’s try to order some  
waffles without slicing someone's arm off.”

“No guarantees, dork!” Chloe said as she slammed the truck door shut and walked towards the restaurant.

“You’re calling me a dork after making that cringey Star Wars reference?” Max retorted with a smirk as she entered the diner.

“Yeah, okay whatever!” Chloe laughed and jumped into one of the booths. Max sat comfortably opposite of Chloe and picked up the all too familiar menu.

To any visitor, the Two Whales Diner looked like any old small town diner frozen in the 1950s, complete with stools for the table front and booths lining the windowed walls that faced the Arcadia Bay shore. Inside were many of the usual passersby and regular customers. Many of them were truckers just passing through hoping to squeeze in a few minutes of R&R with just their thoughts and a black cup of Joe. To Max though, the Two Whales Diner was a home away from home. Some of the truckers she saw were familiar faces from the many times she had come in with Chloe when they were kids. A few of the other people were students she recognized from class. One character, though caught her eye. He was a rather disheveled man who glared at Chloe with a sad and utterly callous stare.

“I see school’s out already,” Max’s thoughts were interrupted by a familiar Southern accent, “What’ll you be having today, girls?”

“Oh, hello Joyce!” Max beamed a smile and waved, “You know I had to come here again for a couple of your amazing waffles!”

“Of course, darlin’,” Joyce smiled warmly, jotted Max’s order down, and turned to Chloe, “What about you sweetie?”

“The Chloe Special, of course!” she exclaimed.

“Did you make sure to do your laundry like I asked you to?” Joyce narrowed her eyes as she asked.

“Uh… no?” Chloe sunk into her chair and gave the waitress a nervous smile, “You’ll still give it to me for free and stuff ‘cause I’m like your favorite daughter and shit… right?”

“You know I can't give you a free meal EVERY time you show up here, right?” Joyce crossed her arms and gave Chloe a glare of contempt.

“It’s okay, Joyce! I can pay for the both of us!” Max smiled and said, “Besides, I owe Chloe lunch this time!”

Joyce’s demeanor melted away as she turned to Max, “Nonsense missy! I still haven't even given you a proper Welcome Back party yet! For you, this’ll be on the house. Consider it my gift for returning home, Honey.”

“Thanks, Joyce!” Max smiled excitedly and responded.

“Okay dear, I’ll head back and ring in your order,” Joyce smirked at Max and turned to sarcastically scold her daughter, “Kid, you're so lucky you have a good friend watching over you. You're such a pain in the butt sometimes, I can't even…”

“I love you too, Mom!” Chloe smiled playfully as her mother turned away and went to the front to ring the order. The punk rocker turned to her best friend who was looking at her phone with a contorted face of frustration, “What’s up, Emperor Maximus? You’ve been staring at your phone with that face the entire trip here.”

“I’ve just been having a weird day. I had this horrible nightmare while I was sleeping in class and this weird app keeps popping up on my stupid phone!” Max said as she deleted it again.

“Well have you bothered to open it?” Chloe tilted her head to the side as if her suggestion was obviously the most brilliant idea in the world.

“UGH, of course not! Why would I want to do that? What if it was a virus or something?”

“Well, if some weirdo app popped up on my phone, I’d want to see what it was,” Chloe shrugged.

“And that can explain why you’ve replaced your phone more times than I can count.” Max smirked.

“Ouch. Never thought my own best friend would burn me so!” Chloe let out a loud laugh from her seat as their food reached the table.

“You two are rather rowdy today,” Joyce grinned as she set the plates down in the table, “You’re not gonna go off causing trouble again, are you?”

“Now what makes you think that, Mom?” Chloe smiled at the waitress as she shoveled a forkful of waffle, egg, and bacon in her mouth.

“Oh, just call it a mother’s intuition,” she shook her head and turned to Max, “How’s your food, dear?”

“Ish real good, Joycish!” Max responded with a dopey grin, her cheeks stretched like a chipmunk but full with waffle chunks.

“Why thank you, Max! Now go and eat up. I don't want to keep the both of you,” Joyce smiled and walked off.

The two scarfed down their food with an excited vigor. With their appetites sated, they headed to the bathroom to wash up before leaving. Max’s eyes once again wandered towards the disheveled man until she saw his eyes meet hers with a cold glare. Max rapidly averted her eyes away and looked at Chloe to briefly see her face contort upon seeing the dirtied male.

Inside the bathroom, Max noticed the app installed itself back in her phone. This time, the app took up the screen and showed a bar indicating that it was loading.

“Ugh,” Max grunted as she frustratingly tapped at her touchscreen.

“So how do you know Frank?” Chloe asked from the inside of the bathroom stall.

“Who?” Max looked towards Chloe’s stall.

“Frank Bowers?” Chloe said as Max’s phone made a strange ringing noise, “That fucking pest who I swear to God kept eying Rachel like she was gonna be his next conquest every time we went to him for the good stuff.”

“I really don't know who you're talking about, Chloe.”

“Fuck, his shit sure could take you to Wonderland, though,” Chloe somewhat quietly reminisced to herself.

“What did you say?” Max asked as she violently tapped her phone screen to stop it from ringing.

“Do I have to spell it out for you Max? The guy who owns the RV outside?” Chloe’s mind wandered back to the subject at hand as Max’s phone chirped again, “You’ve been eying him and his bowl of beans since we got here.”

“I don't know him, but something about him felt off -”

“Location verified. Seal unlocked. Beginning Navigation,” a feminine voice from Max’s phone interrupted her train of thought.

“Wait, what?” Max looked at her phone whispered.

“What’d you say, Max?” Chloe kicked the bathroom stall open and spoke, “You trailed off there for a sec.”

“I dunno. My phone has been ringing randomly. Now it just said some weird thing and -”

A purple haze interrupted Max and gave the girls a sudden dizzy spell. Chloe pinched the bridge of her nose in response and shook her head in a vain attempt to shake off the sudden pain in her forehead.

“Fuck, I really gotta lay off whatever the fuck those Vortex Cucks put in their drinks,” the blunette raspily commented.

Recovering from her own dizziness, Max quipped, “You say that after every Vortex Club party you go to, and yet you still drink whatever crap moonshine is there.”

“Shove it, Caulfield,” Chloe smirked as she pushed open the door and walked out. She froze in place as she realized that the door that should have led them back to her mom’s diner mysteriously led back to an eerily similar looking bathroom. The dulled ivory white tiled walls of the diner restroom were strewn with various four digit numbers written to look like graffiti from Chloe’s graffiti marker.

“Uh, this isn't the diner, Chloe.” It was all that Max could say from behind her best friend as they entered the room.

“Well no shit, I can see that, Maximus!” Chloe responded with frustration. The door slammed shut behind both girls and an audible beep followed by the clicking of a bolt informed them that the door had locked itself shut behind them.

“What the shit?” Chloe dove for the door and wiggled the doorknob, “What the ever-living fuck is going on? Am I hella tripping right now?”

Max’s eyes carefully surveyed the walls of the bathroom for a few long minutes before her eyes rested on a keypad next to the door her best friend had been attempting to pry open. Her hand ghosted over the keypad and she saw that the numeric screen only had room for four numbers. She commented, “What is this keypad doing here?”

Chloe took out some weird tool and began to fiddle with the knob, “Beats me. You could tell me I’m in Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom right now and I’d believe you.”

Max looked around at the various numbers that lined the walls and pondered to herself if one of these numbers could be their ticket out. The freckled photographer scanned the room with observant eyes and noticed something peculiar about the mirror’s reflection.

“I got nothing. This bolt ain't moving an inch with my shit tools,” Chloe threw in the towel and said. “Any luck on your end, Maxie Pad?”

Max ignored Chloe’s question and moved closer to the mirror. Only one set of numbers on the wall reflected backwards off of its glossy sheen. She squinted her eyes in thought and read off the numbers, “Try typing in zero-seven-two-two.”

“W-Why that number?” Chloe stuttered out her question, surprised by the random, yet coincidental, set of numbers.

“I have a hunch, Chloe,” the brunette replied, “Just trust me on this one.”

“Uh yeah, sure,” the punk rocker regained her composure and typed out the code on the keypad. “Zero…Seven… Two… and… Two!”

The keypad rang and the sound of the bolt sliding out signaled to the teens that Max’s hunch was correct. “Let’s get out of here so that we can figure out where the fuck we are,” Chloe said to Max as she twisted the knob open.

“Agreed.”

Both Max and Chloe could not believe their eyes as they walked past the door and into the world that was anything but the Blue Whales Diner. Behind the door laid a wasteland of hundreds of destroyed trees littered with various patches of burnt grass. Tall remnants of pink and yellow mushrooms littered much of the forest and fresh vines covered much of the space in between. Broken “This Way” and “That Way” signs littered the small path that extended from the bathroom door they had exited to the inside of the forest.

“What. In. The. Fuck” was all Max could muster up from the shock she felt at what she saw.

“You’re telling me, Dorothy,” Chloe replied, slack jawed, “We ain't in fucking Kansas anymore.”

A brief rustling in one of the dried bushes nearby startled the teens as they turned to see what looked to be a cartoonishly disproportioned cat with a big head and an unrealistically tiny body appear from the bush and scurry down the path way in front of them.

“I guess that thing’s our Cheshire Cat?” Max thumbed in the direction the cat went and joked.

“Let’s gun it then! That thing might be our way out of wherever the fuck we are!”

The two girls ran down the path in an attempt to follow the monster cat. As they ventured deeper and deeper into the forest, the familiar scent of lit weed began to distract Chloe from her chase. Stopping to check on her, Max asked, “You smell it too?”

“Yeah. It's hard to shake off that scent when it's everywhere.” Chloe replied anxiously. Hearing the noise of rustling nearby, both of them hid behind a tall bush, failing to notice the movement behind them.

Peering deeper into the dilapidated forest, Max noticed the origins of the smell came from a clearing in front of what looked to be a gigantic castle adorned with hearts and heart shaped windows. Bizzare humanoid creatures, in particular a tall one with an even bigger top hat, gathered around a table in the clearing with lit joints in their mouths and steaming teacups in their hands. Each of their faces looked sullen and yet they all seemed familiar. Their eyes were devoid of any life, despite the eerily permanent smiles on each of their faces.

“What in the fuck are we looking at?” Chloe asked, utterly stunned by what she was seeing.

“I don't even know,” Max replied, “let’s follow that cat and -”

The sound of a loud smack into Chloe’s body interrupted Max as she turned around to see what hit her. She briefly caught the image of what looked like a large playing card holding a shield and spear before her sight went black.

An ominous voice above her sounded off before Max fell into unconsciousness, “Tell the king we found her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chloe's Special = One waffle, three pieces of bacon, two eggs, two sausages, one helping of hash browns, and a crap ton of ketchup.
> 
> 0722 is a pretty significant number to both Chloe and the King of the castle.


	3. Playing Cards and Personas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Separated from her best friend and caught with her back against the wall, Max musters up the strength to awaken the power of her other self.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for your support! Enjoy this next chapter and please feel free to leave a Kudos or comment/critique my work! Thanks!

Max jolted upward upon hearing the loud CLANG of the barred metal door swing shut. Her breathing began to speed up as she quickly took in her surroundings. The fires of several torches provided the only light throughout the decrepit dungeon. The walls that lined her jail cell were stones similar to the ones that lined the castle wall she saw before they were ambushed. The air was pungent with the smell of urine and excrement from the other cells. Sitting up from the plank that was a poor excuse for a bed, she noticed the skeletons of people who occupied the cell before her. Several thoughts bombarded Max’s mind as she absorbed the scene before her - “How the fuck did I get here”, “What the fuck is here?”, “Where the fuck is here?”, “Where is-”

“CHLOE!” Max reflexively stood up, bolted to the caged door, and white-knuckled the bars as she screamed, “CHLOE WHERE ARE YOU?! CHLOE PLEASE TELL ME YOU’RE HERE!”

With her throat hoarse from the screaming and her eyes red with her tears, she crumpled into herself as she slowly dropped down to the ground. Max whispered, “I can’t do this without you, Chloe…”

“Who’s Chloe?” A mysterious voice in front of her asked.

Max leapt back from the cage upon hearing the noise. She looked up from her sitting position on the ground and saw a very familiar monster cat staring at her with its head tilted slightly to the side. Max’s eyes widened and she stammered loudly, “W-w-what the - Who the hell are you?!”

“Shhhh! Not so loud or you're gonna alert the guards!” The cartoonish feline whispered loudly, “I’m Morgana, and I’m here to rescue you!”

“And you’ll get Chloe too?”

“Again, who’s Chloe?”

“She was the other girl with blue hair who was with me. Have you seen her?”

“Oh… her,” Morgana blushed briefly before shaking its head to focus, “Yes, she’s being taken to the throne room. I presume the king wants to execute her.”

“HE WHAT?! WE HAVE TO SAVE HER!”

“Stay calm, please! We will try to reach her. UGH, we gotta focus though! You guys blew my cover the moment you got here and now they're looking for -” Morgana turned to face down the hallway the moment it heard footsteps march closer to their location. “Crap! They found me! I got nowhere to run... I gotta fight ‘em!”

Four card guards marched down the hallway to find Max staring wide-eyed back at them from the inside of her cell. The cards were gigantic monstrosities with thin but wide bodies and stubby legs at the corners. Their thin arms held their spears in a guarded manner as they looked around with their pole arms prepared to strike. Suddenly the cat dropped from the ceiling screaming, “Come, Miss Adler! Witness my resolve!”

The four cards were knocked back from the sheer force of the wind that came from the cat as it landed on the ground. Max was terrified when she realized the cat wasn't alone. Behind the cat stood a tall woman clad in a Victorian-era opera dress with a large skirt that bowed inward. Her face smirked with an air of confidence and poise. In one hand she held a photograph and in the other she held a pair of opera glasses attached to a long metal stem. The entirety of her being glowed in an arctic blue fire similar to the flames Max saw at school.

“Stay back!” Morgana yelled to Max, “Let me try to blow down the cage - YAOOWW!”

A swift smack by the spear of one of the remaining guards landed on Morgana’s head, causing the mysterious opera figure to disappear as the feline flew towards the wall. As it tried to get up, the card guard stepped on its body to keep the monster cat pinned down as more guards marched into the hallway with spear tips pointed at the fallen feline. Max observed all of this with horror as her thoughts screamed one thing, “How am I gonna save Chloe… and now Morgana?”

The torch flames that lit the dungeon suddenly dimmed and the only source of light came from a small blue butterfly that fluttered ever so slowly in front of Max. A soothing voice called out to her, seemingly from the butterfly itself, “You are held captive. A Prisoner of Fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This truly is an unjust game. Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you…”

Max blinked as the butterfly seemed to fade out and the flames began to provide light again to the dilapidated dungeon. Her eyes focused back on the fallen cat who was at the mercy of the numerous card soldiers surrounding it.

“Chloe... Morgana… No…” Max whispered sullenly to herself.

“Is that it? Are you just going to stand there and watch?” the familiar voice of the little girl in the blue flame began to speak again. “Are you willing to stand by and let them have their way? Each of them will kiss death if you do not intervene.”

“I know but -” Max whispered to the voice.

“So you are willing to forsake your friends again at their moment of need?” The mysterious voice angrily interrupted her in an attempt to snap the teenager back to her senses.

Max’s eyes shot open at the question and then squinted into a determined gaze, “No, never again.”

The voice continued, “Good. You have been a passive lens into this world for far too long. Don't you think it's time we change that? Your other self desires it thus.”

Max felt what was left of her panic wash away and instead felt an unbreakable resolve strengthen her as she stood tall. She realized that the little girl in her head was another side of herself - the Max that knew what she needed to do, but was too terrified to act. She glared at the guards before her and replied with a raspy voice, “Yes. It’s time.”

“Perfect!” The little girl responded gleefully, “I can sense the quiet rebellion brewing within you! Now, vow to me!”

Max briefly heard the sounds of chains ringing before a sharp sting stabbed through the entirety of her mind. The little girl’s voice triumphantly pierced through the pain in Max’s head.

“I AM THOU. THOU ART I. THOU HAST BEEN THRUST INTO A FANTASTICAL NEW WORLD, DRIVEN INTO INSANITY BY A TYRANT’S FALSE JUSTICE. CALL UPON MY NAME, AND UNLEASH THINE OWN MADNESS.”

The pain in Max’s head grew unbearable, almost as if multiple knives were repeatedly stabbing her in the head. Max dropped to her knees as the pain suddenly subsided and a sudden pulse of wind violently blew the caged door off of its hinges and into a nearby guard, making it burst into ash. The remaining guards flew back from the force of the blast, their sights set on the newly opened prison cell in front of them. Max suddenly felt a new object nestled on her face in front of her eyes and raised her hands to feel it. Every thought in her head and every fiber of her being urged her to pull it off. She struggled to stand on both feet.

“Per…” Max struggled to say the word as she gripped her hand tight around the mask.

“...so…” She began to tug the mask, feeling its strong attachment to her face begin to peel at the skin.

“...NAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!” With one clean tug, she violently tore the mask off.

She screamed from the pain and felt her shriek echo throughout the dungeon. Blood spurted out where the mask had been and she glared at the guards with insanely gleeful yellow pigmented pupils and an equally gleeful toothy smirk. The blood on her face seemed to slowly slide towards and disappear into her eyes and a tower of blue flame emerged from the ground beneath her. The flames slowly enveloped every part of her being and instead of feeling the intense pain of a burn, Max felt a soothing calm, as if she were born anew in a baptism of blood and fire. The little girl let out a slow foreboding giggle as she emerged from the tower of flames. She was shorter and looked younger than the teenager she emerged from. Long blonde hair hung slightly past her shoulders and curled slightly upward at the tips. She held herself up like a shy, young, Victorian-aged child and kept her arms clasped together behind her knee length blue dress. She too looked at the card soldiers before her but instead with innocent looking yellow pupiled eyes. The corner of her pursed lips curled slightly at the edges upon the sight of the soldiers as they ignored Morgana and inched their way to Max instead. The little girl slowly turned her head back to Max as the blue flames around the freckled teen subsided slightly. Unbeknownst to Max, her clothing had changed. No longer was she wearing the simple grey hoodie, pink T-shirt, and blue jeans she had sported earlier. Instead she donned a black trench coat with red highlights and coat tails that ended at her knees. The coat sported a hood that made the getup look more like a rogue or thief’s outfit. Underneath the coat she sported a white collared shirt with a grey vest and at her legs, she wore comfortable leather boots that extended upward and over her knees.

“My name is Alice. I am the rebel’s soul that lies within you,” the little girl turned away from Max to look back at the encroaching guards and gave them a mischievous grin. “I see shadows for us to play with! What will you have us do?”

Focusing her attention back to the giant card soldiers before them, Max also gave them an equally terrifying smile and whispered hoarsely, “Let’s have some fun.”

“With pleasure...” Alice said with a wicked flourish as she extended her arms out towards her sides, the pupils of her eyes dilated into a crimson red gaze. Blood red wisps of vapor shot out of her arms and head in the shape of a pair of wings and the head of a Jabberwocky. The dragon-like creature belted out a loud roar as the wings and head enveloped the guards as they disappeared into ash, leaving the dungeon hallway empty except for Morgana, Max, and her new Persona, Alice.

“What was that? I have never seen that before!” Morgana exclaimed as it got up and off the floor.

“I don't know, but… wowsers,” Max breathed out with exhaustion as the Persona disappeared with a giggle and reappeared as the mask on her face.

“You awaken with a strong Persona and that is the first thing you say?” the monster cat quipped, “Oh boy.”

Max snorted at the cat’s comment and responded, “You’ll get used to it. Right now we need to save Chloe.”

“You’re right! We must go find Lady Chloe!”

“Okay, you got no right to complain about what I say if you’re gonna call her that!” Max jokingly quipped.

With a blush, Morgana sped towards the exit and said, “U-uh no time to chit-chat! We got a princess to save!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Concept Pics I used for Max's Metaverse costume and mask: https://scorchcc1262.tumblr.com/post/173808700170/some-of-the-photos-i-used-as-concepts-for-maxs
> 
> Fun Fact: Alice is my favorite non-starter Persona in the game and I thought she was rather fitting to be Max's starting Persona. Even though she is willing to conform to the mannerisms and clothing of her time period, her unwillingness to simply accept Wonderland at face value and her constant questioning of everything there made her a symbol of the quiet rebellion in Japan... and many people adore her for it! I feel this idea of the "quiet rebellion" is very fitting for someone like Max. 
> 
> Alice from Persona 5: https://static.giantbomb.com/uploads/scale_small/3/31838/1175233-alice.jpg


	4. Blue Hair and Velvet Rooms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max, armed with her new powers and allied with her cat friend, Morgana, attempt to save Chloe, who is shackled up and awaiting execution under the hands of the mad King of Hearts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late post! I wanted to rewrite it until I thought it flowed better! Enjoy!

“Woah… how the hell did I get in this outfit?” Max looked at her hands and body as she and Morgana hid from the observant gaze of a lone card shadow.

“Wait, did you JUST notice that now?” The feline companion asked incredulously.

“Yeah, sorry. This is just a lot to take in,” Max pulled the intricately stylized white and black butterfly mask off of her face to look at it, “My mask, my outfit, my persona. This all feels so new to me and yet it feels like I’ve had it all this time.”

Morgana turned its head away from observing the guard and looked at Max with a tiny, sympathetic grin, “It’s the will of your rebellion. It feels new because you were brave enough to face that side of yourself. It's familiar because deep down, you’ve always known you’ve had it in you.”

“Thanks Morgana,” she said as she let out a calm smile, “My name’s Max, by the way. I’m glad you tried to bail me out back there.”

Morgana let out a brief laugh, “Heh. No need to thank me yet, Max. We still got your friend to save!”

Morgana turned its head back as it heard the noise of the guard march away from the pillar the two persona users were hiding behind.

“This shadow’s turned its back to us, so let’s get ‘em! You remember what I taught you so far, right?”

“Yeah,” Max placed her mask back on her face and a kukri-shaped Vorpal Blade manifested in blue flame in her right hand, “Let’s do this.”

Max peeked over their cover to confirm the back of the guard was facing her and her cat companion. A surge of anxious adrenaline shot through her body and she closed her eyes to center herself.

“For Chloe…”

The masked rogue leapt up and plunged her blade deep into the card soldier’s small neck. The bloodied card screamed in agony as its body disintegrated into ash. Max stuck her three-point landing with an elegant flourish, surprised at how athletic she could be with her new power. “Oh… wowsers…”

Morgana approached Max with crossed arms and one of its brows raised, “Are you really going to end all of your fights saying that?”

Letting out an amused smirk, Max stood up as her blade dissipated and asked, “So why do I feel stronger in this world?”

“The Metaverse is a cognitive world, so your strength is limited only by your thoughts and cognition,” Morgana explained as it passed a noticeably fancier set of doors with stylized heart patterns on its surface, “However, you get more exhausted the more you tap into that power, so you need to learn to conserve your energy for the long run.”

She kept pace alongside the cat and asked, “So you're telling me that the stronger my cognition is, the stronger my power will become?”

“There’s more to it, but to simplify, yes, that’s the idea.”

Max looked around the hall and asked, “So, how far until we get to the throne room?”

“We just passed it,” Morgana simply remarked and pointed at the doors with the extensive heart patterns.

Surprised at the casual remark, Max immediately replied, “Wait, why aren't we headed there then?”

“Because we need to sneak in and surprise them. We may be outnumbered in there, so I’d take any advantage we can get,” Morgana replied and stopped in front of a rather plain looking closet door, “Luckily, I have a plan to get us in undetected!”

“And this plan happens to be in this closet?” The butterfly masked teen asked.

“Precisely! One of the vents in there leads to the scaffolding above the throne room!”

\-----------------------------

Chloe awoke from her stupor and winced at the bruise to the back of her head, which felt like it got hit by a truck. The second thing she noticed was that her hands and feet were cuffed together on an X-shaped crucifix that stood vertically and faced a rather gaudy looking heart-shaped throne in the middle of a large and equally gaudy throne room. Chloe squinted her eyes to observe the figure seated in front of her and shook her head in disbelief.

“FRANK?!” Chloe screamed in disbelief, only to feel solid steel slam into her face.

“Show some respect, criminal!” The black masked Ace of Spades card to her left commanded, “He is Francis Bowers, the immortal King of Hearts! You will address him as ‘Your Majesty’ or ‘Merciful King’, you heartless fiend!”

Readjusting her jaw from the hit, Chloe glared at the crowned drug dealer and smirked in disbelief, “So this is what hell looks like. Rachel and Max are gone and this fuckwad is king.”

“WHAT DID YOU SAY?” The pestilent king stood up and asked his blue-haired prisoner. He strode up to the shackled punk rocker and squinted.

Chloe sneered at the silk and fur ladened king. She turned her head to spit out some of the blood in her mouth and sarcastically mocked, “Henry VIII called, your majesty. He humbly requests that you give him back his wardrobe.”

“You have some gall to show your face here again after what you pulled! Do you even know why you're here?” The king’s eyes stabbed into Chloe’s own, his face only inches away from hers.

Chloe laughed in an attempt to mask her confusion, “Heh. I would think I’d remember a place like this. Then again, unlike some people I know, I don't need to go to some weird-as-shit sex club or whatever the fuck this place is to get finger-banged by Susie Candy-Crotch.”

Chloe’s laughter ceased upon feeling the sharp sting of the king’s backhand. Her face twisted sharply to the left as the King of Hearts barely recomposed himself and spoke, “I shall add insolence and lying to your long list of charges then. No matter, your punishment will be the same regardless.”

“What the fuck did I do to piss you off?” Chloe sneeringly asked. She slowly turned her head to give the crowned RV owner a cold glare.

“Well, aside from your lying, disrespectful tongue,” he turned to slowly walk around the crucifix as he listed her supposed crimes, “You are also being charged with the kidnapping, desecration, and deflowering of my beloved Queen of Hearts!”

“You think I kidnapped whoever the fuck was your Queen just because she liked my finger more than your dick?” Chloe shook her head in disbelief, “Wow, dude, that’s hella rich. Where’s the hidden camera? Where’s Max hiding, huh? Great prank Max, but this is starting to get stupid!”

The King took out his sword and cut a small, but precise gash on Chloe’s cheek. His composed self cracked slightly and he spoke with a calm, but passive- aggressive tone, “I will let no one, and I mean NO ONE, speak so vulgarly about Queen Rachel Amber Bowers in front of me!”

“Rachel. Amber. BOWERS?!?” A burning fire ignited in Chloe’s soul upon hearing her lover’s name mixed with his last name. She twisted in her restraints with only one thought in her mind - she was going to strangle the life out of Frank Bowers.

“Oh? Did I hit a nerve? ” Frank smiled in an attempt to twist his proverbial knife as he turned away and walked back to his throne, “She is my Queen, and she only has eyes for me, you vulgar charlatan.”

“RACHEL WAS NEVER YOURS TO HAVE, YOU SICK SON OF A BITCH,” Brown irises burst into an intense red. Chloe desperately screamed at the throne. Drops of spit and blood flew out of her mouth as she went rabid with a fiery rage. “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO WITH HER? WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE, YOU UGLY FUCK!”

“I should be asking you those questions, Miss Price, but no matter. I will find her and claim her. At least right now, I can savor the justice of your death,” Frank lazily twisted his hands at the wrist and smirked, “Executioner, I’m beginning to be bored of her rather fruitless tirade. Please, relieve her of her life.”

Hearing his orders, the Ace of Spades turned to his victim and said, “By decree of His Majesty the King of Hearts, You are sentenced to death. Any last words?”

“Yeah. Fuck you, asshole.” Chloe’s pupils stabbed into her executioner’s own eyes.

The dark card wordlessly lifted his axe to prepare for his swing. The blue-haired prisoner continued to struggle against her restraints as the fire in her heart swelled. She briefly thought she heard the faint sound of ringing chains when suddenly she heard a painful scream emerge from her executioner. What used to be his hands and axe now took residence in a bloody mess on the floor in front of Chloe.

A mysteriously familiar voice demanded, “Show me your true form!”

Chloe looked up and stared in horror as she observed a dark, petite figure violently rip off the mask of the now handless executioner. Ashy blood spurted from his face as the body melted and turned into a faceless knight with golden armor. The mysterious figure flipped backwards and landed in front of Chloe. She looked on as the dark figure reached for her face and ripped off her butterfly shaped mask, which evaporated into an azure flame. A glowing blue little girl emerged from behind the figure’s back as the unmasked thief screamed, “Come Alice! Show him my wrath!”

A dark, reddish circular portal opened up underneath the golden knight as the head of a dragon emerged and mercilessly dragged the knight into the ground with its massive jaws. Chloe squeezed her eyes shut and almost soiled herself in fear, her wrists and ankles desperately trying to free herself out of panic instead of anger.

“Milady, will you please stop kicking?! I’m trying to get you out!” a voice whispered next to her left ankle.

Chloe opened her eyes and looked down to see the monster cat from earlier fiddling with her ankle restraints and screamed, “A MONSTER CAT?!? WHAT IN GOD’S ACTUAL LIVING SHIT FUCK…?!?”

“I’m not a monster cat! My name is Morgana!!!” The cat whisper-shouted to the now fearful teenager, “Max and I are here to bail you out!”

“Wait, WHAT?! You… and Max?!” Chloe looked up to see the relieved grin from her best friend as she set the mask back on her face.

“It’s good to see you’re okay, Chloe,” the masked best friend said softly.

“Okay Max, what the actual shit is going on? Where the fuck are we? Who the fuck is that cat?” Chloe fired off questions at an alarming rate, “Why didn’t you tell me you were some demon summoning anti-hero?!? Also, can I be your sidekick? Cuz that would be totally rad right now!”

Morgana facepalmed as it unlocked Chloe’s shackles, “For someone who was held captive in shackles, you seem to be taking your present circumstances quite well, Lady Chloe…”

“First of all, we’re gonna talk later about your ‘Lady Chloe’ shit right there. Second of all, this is the CLOSEST I’ll ever get to living out my Ash from Evil Dead fantasies!” Chloe said as she massaged her bruised wrists, “LET ME HAVE MY MOMENT, CAT.”

“While I’m sure your little reunion is great and all,” the crowned drug dealer stood from his throne and began to stroll towards the exit, “I’m afraid all of you are going to clean up this little mess you made. Right. Now.”

“Oh hell no! You’re not getting away after the shit you just pulled!” Chloe screamed at the retreating figure of royalty. In a fit of rage, Chloe grabbed the executioner’s axe and charged at the king, only to be blocked off by card shadows that emerged from the ground. Max and Morgana looked around to see the card army had appeared all around them in the throne room.

“By the order of your King, kill all them. Bring me Chloe’s head,” King Frank commanded to his card army as he smiled at the three intruders and casually turned away to leave.

Morgana looked up at Max and stated, “They’ve taken intercept positions and they're attempting to cut us off! We’re gonna have to fight!”

“We have to get out of here,” Max analyzed their situation as her gun and blade apparated in her hands, “There are way too many of them.”

“But we gotta get to Frank!” Chloe demanded with desperation as she clenched the axe handle tightly with her fists, “He fucking knows what happened to Rachel! He has to!”

The punk rocker charged recklessly at the card army that stood between her and Frank’s exit. Her heavy axe broke through some of the guards and she heaved and swung into them. Max and Morgana followed close behind to keep the cards around them at bay.

“Chloe no! We have to get out of here! There’s too many of them!” Max screamed to Chloe. In a panic, she turned to Morgana and ordered, “Morgana, watch our backs! I’ll try to get Chloe! You need to push back anyone behind us!”

“On it!” Morgana affirmed as it turned around with its scimitar in hand, “Come, Miss Adler! Blow them away!”

A large gale of wind radiated outward from the Opera Singer Persona as the cards that gave the three troublemakers chase flew back and slammed into the walls of the throne room. Having almost caught up with Chloe, Max ripped away her mask as well to send out a wave of dark reddish curse energy out at the cards that attacked her. The Persona-less girl swung her axe even more carelessly at the cards, her rage fueled each and every two-handed swing. Suddenly, her body jerked and her eyes widened as she felt the cold blade of a card’s long sword stab into her leg. Chloe fell to the ground and glared with determined eyes at her enemy as she got more and more overwhelmed by the growing number of cards that appeared to surround her.

Max turned around and felt a surge of shock and anger swirl around in her head. Without even hesitating to think, Max lunged forward and shot at the guards that inched closer to her best friend. In a desperate attempt to get their attention, she screamed, “NO! Get away from her!”

She dashed again to slice through another set of guards and ignored their bodies as they disintegrated. More guards emerged in their place to keep Max from reaching her friend. In a foolhardy, adrenaline-filled attempt to keep them at bay, Chloe swung her axe in a wide arc around her and nailed a few of the guards with her repeated heavy axe swings. Seeing her friend’s swings tire her out more, Max again frantically screamed, “GET AWAY FROM HER!”

Max recklessly dove once again and let out a few shots with her pistol. She dashed forward with her knife and slashed through a few more guards until she finally landed near a nearly comatose Chloe, who was too weak now to even lift the axe. Morgana followed Max and landed on the opposite end of Chloe. The cat looked at the punk rocker’s leg wound and said, “I can heal it, but I won't be able to do with all these shadows coming at us!”

Max nodded and ordered, “Do what you can with her, I’ll try to hold them back.”

The rogue reached for her mask, pulled it from her face, and screamed, “Let’s go Alice! Ravage them!”

The little girl emerged from Max’s mask and swung her arms outward as long red streaks formed into dragon wings and swept through several card shadows like fire through paper. Several more appeared behind Max and she swept through them once more with another swipe from her Persona.

“How’s it going over there, Morgana? I don't think I can hold out much longer over here!” Max screamed, her voice weakened from her exertion.

“I can't heal her. There are too many here to deal with for me to focus!” The cat screamed as it cut through a couple of card soldiers.

Max looked around at the sheer crowded throne room as more shadows showed up to replace their fallen comrades. She knew that if she kept holding them off at this rate, she would eventually get exhausted too.

“You’re holding back,” the glowing little girl next her said as she swiped once again with her Abyssal Wings.

Max briefly looked down to her persona and tilted her head in confusion, “What?”

“You know your true power! I can feel it,” the little girl said with a passionate fervor, “Yet you choose to hold back for fear of failure. You think you might fail them if you do not unleash it all but you know you will fail them if you continue down your current path. So, I ask you: Why hold back now?”

Max turned back to the next incoming wave of shadows and replied, “You’re right.”

The rogue glared towards the incoming wave of guards with angry red-pupiled eyes. She flipped her kukri into an ice-pick grip and stabbed it into the ground with full force. With a raspy breath, she screamed, “DIE FOR ME.”

Her persona Alice whipped her right arm outward with open an open palm as a card army of her own emerged outwards and charged into the surrounding card shadows. Unlike the deck of cards from the King of Hearts’ army, Max’s own were Tarot Cards with the various arcana written and drawn on each of their surfaces. Each of the Tarot cards landed their lances into the shadows and caused multiple explosions as they charged away from their epicenter. Suddenly, the throne room grew quiet. Max felt a swell of exhaustion sweep over her as she keeled over to the ground, the knife she held in her hand disappeared. She turned to see Morgana running to Chloe’s side and she weakly smiled. She looked back at her persona and thought she briefly saw a flicker of a Greek helmet and spear appear in the glowing girl’s hands before her eyelids grew too heavy to keep open.

Stunned by the sheer volume explosions all around it, Morgana quickly shook its head to focus and tended to the exhausted and wounded Chloe. The blunette felt a surge of tranquil coolness wash over her as the pain in her leg disappeared and she was able to stand up with the aid of the monster cat. She turned to the feline and exclaimed, “Fuck, you guys actually did it! Wait, where’s Max?”

Chloe turned to her friend and her relieved smile turned into a panicked gasp. She and the cat sprinted over to the rogue teenager. The punk teen shook her best friend’s shoulder with a frightened desperation and shouted, “Come on Mad Max! Please wake up, ol’ buddy! You can’t fucking move a goddamn mountain to save my stupid, sorry ass twice and expect me to just let you die here!”

Morgana examined Max and said, “She appears to be fine. I think that last attack with her Persona exhausted her.”

Chloe turned to the cat and asked, “Well you healed me up pretty good. Do you have anything to help her?”

“I can only heal wounds, but she’s not hurt,” Morgana explained, “All we can do is get her out of here for now.”

Chloe turned to Max with worried eyes. She reached out to carry her and said, “Okay Evie Frye Wannabe, let’s get you outta here. Come on!”

Max groaned in her fetal position and weakly smacked Chloe’s arms, “Stop it Kate. You know that I’m ticklish there....”

Chloe looked at her friend with a shocked, yet amused face and teased, “Kate? Ticklish? Oh ho ho ho, Max, you gots a lotta explainin’ to do~!”

Morgana looked up at the punk rocker with a confused face, “Your best friend is weird.”

“She’s… a character, that’s for sure,” Chloe said with a smirk to the cat as she carried her best friend’s exhausted body over her shoulder, “Okay, wait, what’s your name again?”

The cat bowed towards the blunette, “Morgana, at your service, Lady Chloe!”

“Okay, we’re SO DEFINITELY gonna talk about whatever the fuck you just called me when we get out of this shithole,” Chloe squinted at the cat, “Okay, kitty-cat, lead the way.”

“Uh, y-yes, ma’am!” Morgana darted ahead nervously to find the way out with Chloe following close behind.

\------------------

Max drifted out of consciousness and into a familiar, yet strange sight. She sat up from her lone desk and saw the familiar clothesline of pictures being hung up to dry. Lines of undeveloped film and empty trays rested on an otherwise clean table counter and bottles of chemicals lay unused on various shelves lining the walls of the room. It reflected everything that Max recognized in her photography class’ dark room, but instead of the familiar red hue that colored any old dark room, it was instead illuminated with a vibrant blue.

“Ah, we meet again, Trickster!” Max stiffened at the sound of the familiar voice from her dreams. She slowly turned around to see the familiar creepy figure with the intense stare and long nose.

“Welcome to the Velvet Room.”


	5. The Spark of Rebellion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max learns the identity of the long-nosed man from her dream and meets the caretakers of the Velvet Room. Max unknowingly makes her first Confidant connections as she, Chloe, and Morgana discuss Frank's palace, the Palace Seal, the Metaverse App, and their future plans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

“Where… where am I?” Max sat up from the lone desk and looked around her.

“This,” The long nosed figure extended its arm with hands palm up as if to showcase the blue room, “is the Velvet Room. It is a place that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. I am Igor, and I am quite pleased to make your acquaintance.”

“And I am Lavenza, I will be assisting you during your tumultuous journey,” a small girl who looked similar to Max’s own persona emerged from behind Igor. She wore a gentle smile and carried a book that was half her size.

Igor continued, “Generally speaking, those who have signed a contract may enter this room.”

Suddenly, Max’s butterfly mask materialized on her face and flew out in front of her to transform into Alice. The long nosed man clapped his hands in elation.

“Ah, I am delighted to see that your contract has already been formed! The spark of your rebellion has been lit, just as I have foreseen it!” Igor said with glee.

“Rebellion? Contract? No, Mr. Igor, sir. I think you may have the wrong p-person,” Max stuttered her words in denial of her perceived destiny.

“Ah, but it is as the photographs have foreseen,” Igor retorted then turned to his assistant, “Lavenza, if you would so kindly lend me the photographs in question?”

“Certainly.” The girl in the blue dress walked to one of the hanging photos and unclipped it from the clothesline. With the photos in tow, she gracefully approached Max and laid them gently on her desk. Max gasped at the subject of the images - one was of the storm she saw and the other was of her awakening in Wonderland’s prison.

Igor explained, “As you can see, we have been expecting you. Unfortunately, this visit will have to be a short one, as you have passed out from unleashing only a fraction of your power.”

Max looked up from the photo and asked, “Wait, so this is a dream? W-wait, what do you mean by me ‘unleashing only a fraction of my power?’”

“Yes, right now your friends are undoubtedly trying to get you out of the palace you unknowingly stumbled upon,” the long nosed Velvet Room resident replied, “No doubt they will try to resuscitate you, but fret not. You will be able to come back here of your own accord… and I expect that it will be very soon.”

The photographs in front of Max glowed into a bright white and reshaped itself into a palm-sized azure skeleton key as Igor continued, “Please, Trickster. Take this key.”

Max pocketed the key and jumped when she heard a familiar voice scream, “Come on, Maxie McFly! Ya gotta wake up, old pal!”

“It would be rude of us to keep them waiting. We look forward to aiding in the fires of your rebellion,” Igor said as it bowed, “Until then, farewell.”

Max felt herself get lifted off of her chair as the blue photography room faded briefly into the darkness only to have her vision be blinded by the shine of a bright white light as she regained consciousness. When her vision cleared, she found herself lying down and looking up at the sky to see a familiar blue haired punk rocker and a peculiar looking NOT monster cat staring back down at her.

“See, I told you she would wake up, L- err… Chloe!” the cat looked at the punk rocker nervously only to have her poke glares back at it.

Chloe looked down to Max and asked, “How ya feeling, Miramax?”

“Whelp, I must still be dreaming if I just heard that cat just talk,” Max replied.

“Nope, you really aren't. It's me, Morgana, and I’M NOT A CAT,” the “not-a-cat” replied, “I am a human, just like you two! I just appear in this world as a cat!”

“Uh huh,” Chloe replied with a disbelieving tone, “Yeah, until you start looking more like a human, you're just a cute pussy cat. Hmm, speaking of which…”

Morgana squeaked as Chloe lifted it up to check underneath it. She ignored the cat as it cursed, “WHATAREYOUDOING?! PUTMEDOWNTHISINSTANTYOU’RELUCKYYOU’REREALLYPRETTYTOLOOKATOHMYGODPUTMEDOWNPUTMEDOWN!!!”

Max straightened up slightly and leaned on her elbows. She looked around and realized she was nestled on the flatbed of Chloe’s truck. She giggled slightly and asked, “Chloe, what are you doing to our poor friend?”

“What? Just wanted to see if it's a girl cat or a guy cat,” Chloe said as she held the cat firmly despite its squirming.

“I’M A GIRL, YOU IDIOT!” the squirmy cat screamed, “My name IS a girl’s name! You know that, RIGHT?!”

“You never know,” Chloe said as she gently set the cat down on the truck bed, “I was just curious.”

“What kind of idiot guy names himself with a girl’s name?!?” The cat sneered at the blunette.

“Okay, okay, settle down you two,” Max said. She sat up and saw both the familiar sign of the Blue Whales Diner and Frank’s RV resting in the restaurant’s parking lot. “Huh, we’re back at the Diner?”

“Yeah. I’ve never been so happy to see that Diner and Your Majesty’s fucking landfill on wheels ever in my life,” Chloe said as she sighed and smirked.

“That was a real close call, especially when you passed out, Max,” Morgana interjected, “The entire palace went on high alert when they realized you killed a good chunk of the King’s Card Army.”

“Thanks for getting us out of there,” Max let out a slight grin and said.

“No need to thank me, Super Max!” Chloe laid her hand on Max shoulder and squeezed, “If it weren't for you and this cute little pipsqueak here, I would've been a dipshit on a stick. You're my best friend, and I always got your back.”

“And you got my support too, Max, provided that you’ll help me!” Morgana meowed excitedly, “You guys blew my cover in that palace, but I think the both of you will be able to make up for it soon!”

Max blinked as she saw a blue light flash from behind the heads of her old and new friends. ‘Did Igor have something to do with that?’ Max thought to herself. She shelved that question for what Max anticipated would be a second meeting with the mysterious, long-nosed man.

“Honestly. Thank you, both of you,” Max said with a warm smile, “Though, after seeing what we just saw, we should probably talk about what we should do next.”

“We can talk at my place,” Chloe suggested, “Besides, you’ve been meaning to stop by there since you came back right?”

“Yeah, let’s do it!” Max sat up excitedly.

\-----------------------------

“Welcome back to my humble abode,” Chloe opened the door to her room and walked in with Max and Morgana close behind.

Chloe's room was, simply put, an utter pigsty. Pungent smelling clothes were strewn in a pile near the closet and next to the entrance. Posters lined most of the walls not already filled in with a dresser or occupied by a window. An older discolored ivory white computer with a large non-flat screen monitor sat on the punk’s desk, its glass screen had a noticeable layer of dust sprinkled over it. The brunette’s queen sized bed looked disheveled and the sheets were strewn almost violently to one side, and suggested to Max that, once again, Chloe woke up running late for class.

Max feigned a disgusting look at the sight before her and snickered, “What a piece of junk!”

“You’re lucky I know that reference, Caulfield!” Chloe glared over her shoulder at her short haired brunette girl and punched her arm.

Morgana’s face popped out of Max’s camera bag flap and said, “Max is right, though. Your room’s a piece of junk.”

“SHADDUP, CAT,” Chloe replied loudly as Max snorted, “Are you always this much of a critic?”

“I’m just saying, Lady...errr Chloe!” The feline screamed. Max still couldn't get over the fact her Punk friend responded to the cat as if it were a normal, everyday occurrence.

“Okay, okay. Settle down you two,” Max said as she set her bag down and sat at the foot of Chloe’s bed.

Chloe smiled and slammed into her computer chair, “Yes! Let’s talk bidness! So, what the flying fuck was that place we barely came out of?”

Morgana skittered out of Max’s shoulder bag and sat between the two girls, “That place is called the Metaverse. It's an alternate dimension created by the distorted cognitions and desires of the people who occupy it.”

“What do you mean by ‘distorted cognitions?’” Chloe asked.

“They're abnormal or disturbing thoughts that have been left to linger and fester for a long period of time,” the cat explained.

“So basically they’ve had real fucked up thoughts for a real long fucking while,” Chloe thought out loud in her own colorful dialect.

“Precisely.”

“But multiple people can have distorted cognitions, so is there more than one Metaverse?” Max asked.

“No, there is one Metaverse, but there can be many of what I call ‘Palaces.’ They're the actual manifestation and culmination of the desires of the Palace ruler,” Morgana explained.

“So, with Frankie boy, his twisted desire is that he’s pervert who is obsessed with Rachel and drug dealing. So how did he go from living in an RV to almost killing me with his card army?” the Punk Rocker asked with confusion and anger evident in her voice.

“The Frank you saw in that palace is not the same Frank you see in the real world,” Morgana replied, “For all we know, he doesn't remember even seeing you, let alone ordering your execution.”

Chloe became even more confused, “So if that isn't Frank, then…”

“The King Frank you saw was his Shadow Self. They're his thoughts and feelings that he let fester and eat up at him until it distorted his own internal thoughts.”

Max interrupted, “He let his feelings for Rachel and his jealousy of Chloe’s relationship with her eat him up inside. These dark emotions are what built his palace in the Metaverse.”

“Precisely! Wow, Max, you're really picking up on this Metaverse stuff,” Morgana gave Max an impressed smirk, “Unlike someone we know, you're very sharp with your observations. Oh well, at least she’s easy on the eyes.”

“I WILL SKIN YOU ALIVE, CAT,” Chloe whisper-screamed.

“So Morgana, can anyone have a palace?” Max said to attempt to steer the conversation back on track.

“Yes. From what I have seen, anyone with distorted enough thoughts can have a Palace.”

“So, if her thoughts were fucked up enough, even Sir Max-a-lot over here can have a palace too?” Chloe thumbed at Max and asked.

“Actually, no. Max is an exception to the rule.”

“Really, why?” Chloe asked, taken aback by the unexpected answer.

Morgana explained, “It’s because Max has a Persona. Personas are the Shadow form of your other self. Since she has faced with and accepted the deep and dark parts of her other self, she won't ever have a palace. You can have one or the other, but never both.”

“Okay, wow. That’s a lot to take in,” Chloe leaned back on her computer chair, “So you either die a demon summoning badass, or you live long enough to mentally create a disturbing villain superfortress of hate and suffering…”

“Pretty much.” Morgana shrugged.

Max stared at the cat for a long while and put a hand to her chin in thought. Morgana, in response, tilted her head and said, “Something's on your mind?”

“Huh?” Max snapped up and looked back at Morgana, “Oh, uh, I was just thinking about Palaces and how anyone could have one…”

“Yes…?” Morgana quirked an eyebrow up in curiosity.

Max continued her line of thought, “So, uh, I guess my question is: Why were you infiltrating Frank’s Palace? You’re not a Shadow in the palace and you were able to get out with us… but since anyone could have one, why choose his? What made his Palace interesting or special to you?”

“Ah, and now we get to the good stuff,” Morgana replied calmly, “You really are very observant, Max.”

“Uh, thanks?” Max said with an awkward laugh.

“Frank’s palace is interesting because his palace has an additional element sealed within the heart of the castle,” Morgana explained, “It contains a Seal.”

“You mean like the animal?” Chloe asked in an attempt to understand the cat.

“No, no! Nothing like that!” The cat shook its head, “Frank’s treasure also has a sealed scroll attached to it! I believe that collecting these scrolls will help me regain my memory!”

“Your memory?” Max interrupted, “Wait, what don't you remember?”

“I was created and entrusted with something important, but I do not know where I was born, who may parents are, and what that important something is,” the cat looked down and sighed, “All I know is that whatever it is is somewhere in the sealed messages scattered among some of the palaces here in Arcadia Bay.”

“I did see on that Nav App on our phones that it mentioned something a seal being unlocked,” Chloe mentioned and waved with her smart phone, “Is that what you mean?”

“Wait, I thought you told me you didn't recognize the app?” Max questioned.

“I had figured out while we were trying to escape that the weird app on your phone had sent us here. I noticed that the app installed itself on my phone too and got is out of there with it.”

“So that app can distinguish between palaces with and without seals?” Morgana straightened up and wagged her tail with excitement.

Chloe looked at the app and showed the cat the information, “I mean, it looks pretty obvious to me that it could.”

“YES! You guys can help me out!” The cat jumped for joy.

“Woah, wait a second, what?!” Max stood up and screamed in surprise, “You want us to go back to that place to help you?”

“Yep!”

“That same place that almost killed the both of us?” Max pointed at Chloe and herself for emphasis.

“Yep!”

Max pouted, “I’d like to go, but it is too dangerous for us, especially Chloe. Chloe doesn't even have powers and -”

“Max, I want to go,” Chloe rested a hand on Max’s shoulder and continued, “While I was being interrogated, it sounded like Frank knew about what happened to Rachel.”

Max turned to Chloe with wide eyes, “But you almost died back there, Chloe. I want to find Rachel as much as you do, but there’s gotta be a better way. Are you sure you wanna do this?”

“I am sure Max,” Chloe let out a slight grin, “If going back to Frank’s Sex Dungeon from Hell gets me closer to finding Rachel, I’d book my first class ticket there!”

“But what about you? You have no powers…”

“We’ll manage, somehow,” Chloe reassured her best friend, “Besides, it's all cognitive right? I think I might have an idea with that, but that’ll be something to discuss for another time before we head back in.”

“Yeah, about that,” Morgana added, “If we’re gonna do this, we’ll need to do this right. We’re gonna need supplies, equipment, and someone to supervise all of this. We’re gonna need a leader.”

“Okay, so who should it be?” Max asked.

“I vote Max!” Chloe blurted out.

Max flustered at the vote, “W-WHAT?!?”

Morgana grinned mischievously, “I second that vote!”

“DON’T I GET A SAY?!”

“I mean, you could, Captain Under-Max, but we’ve got you two to one,” Chloe lightly punched Max in the arm.

“Why can't it be you, Chloe?” Max pleaded, “You used to drag me through all kinds of adventures when we pretended to be Pirates when we were kids!”

Chloe gripped Max’s shoulders with both of her hands, “But this isn't pretend, Max. I’m too hot-headed when I’m angry. You saw what happened when I tried to chase down Frank’s Shadow. For someone who is super shy and unsure of every one of her actions, when push comes to shove, you showed me that you would fucking murder God if that meant you would save any of us. I’d want someone like that to lead our team.”

“I agree. There is much for you to learn with your powers, but even I think you are a capable leader under pressure!” Morgana added.

“Are you sure about this, guys?” Max looked at the both of them with a hesitant sigh, “I don't want to fail you.”

“You haven't and you won't. I believe in you, Max,” Chloe reassured her with a pat to the shoulder.

“Okay. You can count on me,” Max smiled slightly and said, “We’ll meet tomorrow to talk about logistics.”

“Oh and there’s one more thing we need to discuss!” Morgana said.

“Hmm?” Max questioned.

“Who am I gonna stay with?” The cat grinned and continued, “I refuse to look like some stray kitty!”

“Nuh uh, I can't keep her,” Chloe threw her hands up and responded quickly.

“But you had a cat, Chloe!” Max objected, “Why can't you take her?”

“Step-douche is allergic to the fuckers, no offense, Mona.” Chloe admitted.

“Step-douche?” The Black Cat asked.

“Her stepfather, David,” Max said to Morgana, “He’s the head security guard at school.”

“Why not have her stay with you, Max?” Chloe asked, “It's not like the school has a zero tolerance policy on dorm pets."

Max rolled her eyes at the thought of losing another battle with her two friends, “UGH, fine. I’ll keep Morgana…”

“It's settled then! So it looks like I’ll be rooming with you, Max!” Morgana chirped cheerfully, “It’ll be great! I can even give you a few pointers to help with our Metaverse adventures!”

“Whelp, it's getting late and you need to head back before dorm curfew hits!” Chloe said as she grabbed her truck keys and opened her bedroom door.

Max packed Morgana in her shoulder bag and sighed as she headed out to Chloe’s truck. She looked on as the blues and purples of the evening sky began to paint over the orange sunset hues.

“Oh boy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Morgana Rank 1  
> Chloe Rank 1


End file.
